Kit and method for tie-dyeing and utensil therefor

ABSTRACT

Kit for tie-dyeing an object includes a utensil that retains the object, at least one container of dyeing material, at least one device for maintaining a gathered portion of the object together, and an optional instruction manual or idea guide. The utensil includes a base that can retain the dye containers and devices and an insert arranged in connection with the base. The insert is used during the tie-dyeing and includes a grate elevated from a bottom of the insert, defined by a bottom part, and having a plurality of apertures. The grate forms a support surface for the object and enables dye to flow through the apertures onto the bottom of the insert. The grate can be separated from the bottom part for cleaning and the bottom part can be removed from the base for cleaning.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to a kit designed for tie-dyeing objects. The present invention also relates to a utensil for use in tie-dyeing and which may be part of the kit, along with one or more containers of dye, and assorted paraphernalia needed for tie-dyeing, e.g., elastic bands, and the like.

The present invention also relates to a method for tie-dyeing an object using the utensil or a kit including the utensil.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Tie-dyeing is a method of dyeing by hand in which patterns are produced in a fabric by gathering together one or more portions of the fabric and tying them tightly together. Typically, after the fabric has been suitably tied, it is then immersed, either partially or completely, in a dye bath. The dye will fail to penetrate the tied sections, and after dyeing, the fabric is untied to reveal interesting irregular patterns.

Some kits suitable for use in tie-dyeing, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,951,483, (van Olphen) utilize permanent dyes. This has the disadvantage, particularly for a beginner to the art, in that they do not have the opportunity of reusing the tie-dyed garment or fabric if they are not satisfied with the result.

Recognizing this disadvantage, Fromm, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,640,859, discloses a composite, ready-to-use, do-it-yourself tie-dyeing kit for producing a washable dyed pattern on an article of clothing so that the user of the kit may learn tie-dyeing without ruining or consuming articles of clothing or fabric in the process and will be able to create designs and redo until satisfied with the results. The kit includes instructions, and containers each having a liquid washable non-toxic dye that may be substantially completely washed out of the fabric by the user. The kit further includes one or more ready-to-dye fabric garments to which the washable dyes will adhere until the garment is washed out, and a device, e.g., a twist tie or clip, for tying the garment while it is being dyed.

These prior art references do not disclose a utensil, or kit including the same, that affords a tie-dyer with a working surface on which to dye a garment or other article being tie-dyed and which is easy to handle and clean after use.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A preferred embodiment of a kit for use in tie-dyeing an object in accordance with the invention includes a utensil that retains the object, at least one container of dyeing material, at least one device for maintaining a gathered portion of the object together, e.g., elastic bands, clips, clamps and the like, and an instruction manual or idea guide. In variations of the kit, the kit includes different combinations of these components, provided the utensil is present, e.g., a kit may include only the utensil, maintaining devices and instruction manual and the dyes sold or packaged separately.

The utensil is thus a critical part of the invention and may be used in other kits, or sold separately. The utensil includes a base including means for retaining one or more dye containers and the maintaining device(s), and an insert removably arranged in connection with the base. The insert includes a grate elevated from a bottom of the insert, which may be defined by a bottom part of the insert, and has a plurality of apertures. The grate forms a support surface for the object being tie-dyed and enables dye to flow through the apertures onto the bottom of the insert, i.e., into a space between the grate and the bottom wall of the bottom part.

Significant advantages relating to cleaning of the utensil arise from this construction because when tie-dyeing an object placed on the grate, excess dye flows through the apertures of the grate into the bottom part of the insert and after tie-dyeing is complete, the grate is separated from the bottom part and cleaned, and the bottom part containing the excess dye is also easily separated from the base and cleaned.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals identify like elements, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a kit in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a base of the kit shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a utensil that engages with the base of the kit shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a bottom part of the utensil shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a grate of the utensil shown in FIG. 3 that engages with the bottom part shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a cover of the utensil shown in FIG. 3 that engages with the bottom part shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the bottom part of the utensil engaged with the base of the kit shown in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the grate and bottom part of the utensil engaged with the base of the kit shown in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to the accompanying drawings wherein like reference numbers refer to the same or similar elements, a tie-dyeing kit in accordance with the invention is designated generally as 10 and includes a utensil 12, one or more containers 14 of dyeing material, elastic bands 16 and an instruction manual or idea guide (shown schematically at 18), see FIG. 1.

Utensil 12 includes a base 20 and an insert 22. Base 20 includes several depressions 24 around its periphery, a central receptacle 26 and a handle 28 (see FIG. 2). Base 20 has a flat bottom to enable it to rest on a horizontal surface. The receptacles 24 are designed to accommodate materials used during the tie-dyeing process, and accordingly may be sized and shaped in different ways. Instead of receptacles 24, other means for retaining the tie-dyeing materials, e.g., the containers 14 and elastic bands 16, may be provided, such as hooks.

Receptacle 26 accommodates the insert 22. Receptacle 26 is defined by a tubular wall 30 that includes several inwardly directed, vertically oriented ridges 32, and a bottom wall 34 (see FIG. 2). Ridges 32 aid in positioning of the insert 22 into connection with the base 20. The bottom wall 34 is shown as a complete wall extending entirely between the tubular wall 30. However, it is possible to construct a structure from parts of the tubular wall 30 and/or bottom wall 34 that is sufficient to securely support the insert 22, and the bottom wall 34 thus does not have to be a complete wall extending across the entire space between the tubular wall 30.

Handle 28 enables the utensil 12 to be easily carried, and inserted and removed from a storage and display box (not shown) in which the kit 10 may be sold and stored. It is foreseen that the handle could be omitted.

Insert 22 includes a bottom part 36, a grate 38 that defines a support surface for an object being tie-dyed using the kit 10 and a cover 40 (see FIGS. 3-6). As shown best in FIG. 4, bottom part 36 has a bottom wall 42 and a substantially tubular side wall 44. Side wall 44 includes a lower portion 46 having vertically oriented ridges 48 that result in indentations being formed on the outer surface 50 of the lower portion 46 of the side wall 44, and projections being formed on the inner surface of the lower portion 46 of the side wall 44. Ridges 48 generally correspond in relative position and size to the ridges 32 on the base 20 so that the bottom part 36 can be securely inserted and engaged with the base 20 via cooperation between the ridges 32, 48. Instead of cooperating ridges 32, 48 other constructions and devices that aid in positioning and securing of the bottom part 36 in engagement with the base 20, i.e., into the receptacle 26 therein, may be provided in the invention without deviating from the scope and spirit thereof. Such constructions and devices may be situated on only the base 20, only the bottom part 36 or on both the base 20 and bottom part (such as the cooperating threads in the illustrated embodiment).

Side wall 44 also includes an upper portion 54, having a larger diameter than the lower portion 46 to thereby define a step 56 therebetween. Step 56 provides a horizontal, resting surface for the grate 38.

Grate 38, shown in FIG. 5, thus has a outer diameter that is smaller than the diameter of the inside surface of the upper portion 54 of the side wall 44 of the bottom part 36 yet larger than the diameter of the inside surface of the lower portion 46 to enable the grate 38 to be comfortably seated on the step 56. Grate 38 includes a plurality of apertures 58, the pattern, exact number and size of which permit fluid (dye) to flow through the bottom of grate 38 to insert 22. As shown, the apertures 58 are arranged in a pattern of concentric circles with one aperture 58 in the center of the grate 38. Alternate sizes and shapes are also suitable.

Grate 38 also includes handles 60 on opposite sides and an upwardly projecting rim 62. Handles 60 enable the grate 38 to be handled when placing it onto the step 56 and lifting it off of the step 56 when cleaning of the bottom part 36 is undertaken. Instead of two handles 60, a single handle may be provided, or an alternative structure that enables the grate to be grasped when placing it onto the step 56 and removing it therefrom.

Cover 40, shown in FIG. 6, includes a tubular side wall 66 having vertically extending ridges 68, and an arcuate or spherical upper wall 70. A trademark or other indicator may be arranged on a flat portion of the upper wall 70. In addition, other decorative forms or designs may be optionally arranged on the upper wall 70. Cover 40 is constructed to avoid obstructing the presence of the handles 60 of the grate 38 within an interior of the insert 22 when the cover 40 is engaged with the bottom part 36.

A thread 72 is formed on the inner surface of the side wall (visible when the cover 40 is made of transparent or translucent material as shown in FIG. 3) to engage with a thread formed on the outer surface of the upper portion 54 of the bottom part 36 (see FIG. 4). Ridges 68 can therefore aid in grasping of the cover 40 when twisting the cover 40 relative to the bottom part 36 to engage the cover 40 with the bottom part 36 and remove the cover 40 from engagement with the bottom part 36. Instead of cooperating threads 64, 72 on the outer surface of the bottom part 36 and the inner surface of the cover 40, other means known in the art such as a snap-fit connection for removably attaching the cover 40 to the bottom part 36 may be provided in the invention without deviating from the scope and spirit thereof.

The containers 14 of dyeing material in the kit 10 preferably have different color dyes, e.g., at least one red, one yellow and one blue. The form and size of the containers 14 may vary as desired. Preferably though, the containers 14 should be sized relative to the depressions 24 in the base 20 to enable the containers 14 to fit into the depressions 24 when the containers 14 are upright, e.g., depressions 24 that have a circular form to accommodate the cylindrical body portion of the containers 14, to thereby provide easy access to the containers 14 when tie-dyeing is being performed using the utensil 12.

Elastic bands 16 may be any known type of elastic bands, preferably ones that are suitable for tying garments and other articles that may be tie-dyed using the kit 10. Instead of or in addition to elastic bands 16, other devices for tying garments and other articles together, or maintaining tied portions of the garments or other articles together, may be included in the kit 10, such as twist ties, clamps, clips and the like.

The instruction manual or idea guide 18 may contain instructions about how to use the utensil 12 for tie-dyeing and/or ideas about different garments and other articles that may be tie-dyed using the utensil 12.

In use, the tie-dyer takes a garment, used as an example of an object to be tie-dyed without limiting the use of the invention, and gathers together one or more portions of the garment and ties them tightly together using elastic bands 16. The tied garment is then placed onto the grate 38, which thus provides a support surface for the garment, and the grate 38 is seated on the step 56 of the bottom part 36 while the bottom part 36 is engaged with the base 20 via cooperating ridges 32, (the state shown in FIG. 8). Once the garment is on the grate 38, the grate 38 engaged with the bottom part 38 and the bottom part 38 inserted into the receptacle 26 in the base 20, one or more dyes are added from the containers 14, as desired by the tie-dyer. Excess dye that does not adhere to the garment will drain down into the bottom part 36, e.g., through the apertures 58 into a space between the grate 38 and the bottom wall 42 of the bottom part 36. This excess dye will therefore be retained in the bottom part 36.

After the tie-dyer finishes tie-dyeing the garment, the grate 38 can be removed from the bottom part 36 to arrive at the state shown in FIG. 7, and the bottom part 36 with the excess dye therein, can be removed from engagement with the base 20 and easily cleaned. The grate 38 can also be easily cleaned after removal from engagement with the bottom part 36.

The base 20 and insert 22 may be made of plastic or similar material by any known plastics manufacturing process. The particular shapes of the components of the kit may vary from that shown in the drawings.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but includes any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims. While the invention has been described above with respect to specific apparatus and specific implementations, it should be clear that various modifications and alterations can be made, and various features of one embodiment can be included in other embodiments, within the scope of the present invention. 

1. A kit for tie-dyeing an object, comprising: a utensil that retains the object; at least one container of dyeing material; and at least one device for maintaining a gathered portion of the object together; said utensil comprising: a base including means for retaining said at least one container and said at least one device; and an insert arranged in connection with said base, said insert comprising a grate elevated from a bottom of said insert and having a plurality of apertures, said grate forming a support surface for the object and enabling dye to flow through said apertures onto the bottom of said insert.
 2. The kit of claim 1, wherein said means for retaining said at least one container and said at least one device comprise a plurality of depressions, at least one of said depressions being sized to accommodate one of said containers in an upright position.
 3. The kit of claim 1, wherein said base includes a receptacle into which said insert is removably inserted, said means for retaining said at least one container and said at least one device comprising a plurality of depressions arranged radially outward from said receptacle around a periphery of said base.
 4. The kit of claim 3, wherein said base includes a tubular wall that partly defines said receptacle and includes ridges, said ridges cooperating with corresponding structure on said insert to aid in securing of said insert into connection with said base.
 5. The kit of claim 4, wherein said insert further comprises a bottom part having ridges arranged to cooperate with said ridges on said tubular wall of said base to thereby enable said insert to be secured seated in connection with said base.
 6. The kit of claim 1, wherein said base includes a handle.
 7. The kit of claim 1, wherein said insert further comprises a bottom part having a bottom wall and defining a step above from said bottom wall, said grate being removably seated on said step to thereby define a space between said grate and said bottom wall of said bottom part into which the dye flows through said apertures.
 8. The kit of claim 7, wherein said insert further comprises a cover removably attachable to said bottom part when said grate is seated on said step of said bottom part.
 9. The kit of claim 7, further comprising securing means for securing said bottom part of said insert in connection with said base.
 10. The kit of claim 1, wherein said grate includes at least one handle to enable grasping of said grate.
 11. A utensil for use in tie-dyeing an object, comprising a base; and an insert arranged in connection with said base, said insert comprising a grate elevated from a bottom of said insert and having a plurality of apertures, said grate forming a support surface for the object and enabling dye to flow through said apertures onto the bottom of said insert.
 12. The utensil of claim 11, wherein said base includes a plurality of depressions adapted to retain objects used when tie-dyeing the object.
 13. The utensil of claim 11, wherein said base includes a receptacle into which said insert is removably inserted, said base including a plurality of depressions adapted to retain objects used when tie-dyeing the object and that are arranged radially outward from said receptacle around a periphery of said base.
 14. The utensil of claim 13, wherein said base includes a tubular wall that partly defines said receptacle and includes ridges, said ridges cooperating with corresponding structure on said insert to aid in securing of said insert into connection with said base.
 15. The utensil of claim 14, wherein said insert further comprises a bottom part having ridges arranged to cooperate with said ridges on said tubular wall of said base to thereby enable said insert to be secured seated in connection with said base.
 16. The utensil of claim 11, wherein said base includes a handle.
 17. The utensil of claim 11, wherein said insert further comprises a bottom part having a bottom wall and defining a step above from said bottom wall, said grate being removably seated on said step to thereby define a space between said grate and said bottom wall of said bottom part into which the dye flows through said apertures.
 18. The utensil of claim 17, wherein said insert further comprises a cover removably attachable to said bottom part when said grate is seated on said step of said bottom part.
 19. A method for tie-dyeing an object, comprising: gathering one or more portions of the object; then applying at least one device to maintain the gathered portion or portions together; then placing the object onto a grate having a plurality of apertures; placing the grate onto a bottom part of an insert of a utensil; and applying one or more dyes to the object after the object is placed onto the grate and the grate placed onto the bottom part of the insert of the utensil, whereby excess dye flows through the apertures of the grate onto a bottom of the insert.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the step of placing the grate onto the bottom part of the insert of the utensil comprises placing the grate onto a step formed in the bottom part and elevated from a bottom wall of the bottom part. 